Americans United - Wisconsinhttp://www.au.org/our-work/grassroots/wisconsin
enChange Of Heart: Wisc. Voucher Pioneer Grew Disillusioned With ‘School Choice’http://www.au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/change-of-heart-wisc-voucher-pioneer-grew-disillusioned-with-school-choice
<a href="/about/people/simon-brown">Simon Brown</a><div class="field field-name-field-blog-type field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/blogs/wall-of-separation">Wall of Separation</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-callout field-type-text-long field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Polly Williams, a Democrat who worked with conservatives to bring Wisconsin’s voucher program to life in 1990, later regretted the direction vouchers took in the Badger State.</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="prose"><p>In 1949, five domestic house cats <a href="http://www.conservationevidence.com/individual-study/1585">were introduced</a> to tiny Marion Island, which is off the coast of South Africa, in an effort to control the local mouse population. By 1977, the cat population had ballooned to 3,400, placing the local species of birds in danger of extinction.</p><p>It’s an old story: something that was intended to solve a problem instead creates a host of new ones.</p><p>Consider a parallel to private school vouchers. Like the cats on Marion Island, vouchers were intended to solve a problem: poor educational quality for some low-income students. Not only was that problem not solved, but a host of new ones have arisen; chiefly, the voucher scheme has morphed into a taxpayer bailout for unaccountable religious schools that play by their own rules.</p><p>It seems the former Wisconsin lawmaker who is credited as the “mother of school choice” in the United States was well aware of the problems spawned by vouchers, and by the end of her life had serious misgivings about the program she helped forge.</p><p><a href="http://www.politicalresearch.org/2015/01/29/opening-pandoras-box-the-rise-fall-of-the-rights-school-voucher-pioneer/?utm_source=Week+in+Review+Feb+2%2C+2015&amp;utm_campaign=week+in+review+2%2F2%2F15&amp;utm_medium=email#">In a revelatory report</a> that should give chills to “school choice” advocates everywhere, Political Research Associates fellow Rachel Tabachnik recently detailed how Polly Williams, a Democrat who worked with conservatives to bring Wisconsin’s voucher program to life in 1990, later regretted the direction vouchers took in the Badger State.</p><p>Williams, an African American who served in the Wisconsin State Assembly from 1980-2010, originally thought vouchers could help minority children living in Milwaukee. So she reached across party lines to craft a limited voucher program that was only intended to assist low-income families in Milwaukee attending secular private schools. Thus, it was under this premise that the Milwaukee Parental Choice Program (MPCP) was born.</p><p>But as Tabachnik explained, the very people Williams saw as allies in her quest to improve education had nefarious intentions: They saw a limited voucher program as a gateway to a more extensive scheme that could achieve a long-sought goal of boosting private and religious education with taxpayer dollars.</p><p>Indeed, that’s what happened. A few years after the birth of Wisconsin’s voucher program, Williams had already been pushed aside by her one-time allies, even mocked and labeled “irrelevant.”</p><p>It’s not hard to figure how this happened. Tabachnik wrote that one of Williams’ partners on vouchers was the Milwaukee-based Bradley Foundation, a group that describes itself as “committed to preserving and defending the tradition of free representative government and private enterprise….” The Bradley Foundation was a longtime backer of author Charles Murray, whose book <em>The Bell Curve</em> pushed the debunked concept that black people are intellectually inferior to whites. So instead of trying to help low-income minority students, the Bradley Foundation ended up lobbying to expand the MPCP to students attending religious schools.</p><p>As a result, by the 1998-99 school year, 70 percent of the students participating in the MPCP attended religious schools, Tabachnik said. </p><p>But Williams didn’t take these developments lying down. In 2001, she admitted her increasing unhappiness regarding the path of the MPCP. “Our intent was never to destroy the public schools,” she said at the time.</p><p>It seems Williams also didn’t approve of Gov. Scott Walker, who has become one of the most vocal voucher advocates in the United States. Speaking about Walker, Williams said in 2013: “They have hijacked the program.”</p><p>Sadly, some of Williams’ former allies openly admitted that she had been duped. George Mitchell, a top voucher advocate in Wisconsin, said he stopped working with Williams after the mid-1990s. “Polly was useful to the school choice movement because of her race and her party affiliation,” Mitchell said bluntly in 2013.</p><p>Today, Wisconsin’s voucher program has metastasized from one that was limited to Milwaukee and part of Racine County into a statewide program that grows by the year. And it seems most of the students served by the program <a href="https://au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/bad-news-from-the-badger-state-more-wisc-voucher-students-get-taxpayer">aren’t the ones</a> Williams set out to help. Last year, the Oshkosh <em>Northwestern</em> reported that out of 2,834 eligible students who applied for vouchers statewide, 75 percent already attended a private school.</p><p>Williams passed away in 2014. But even in death, her former allies betrayed her by hijacking her legacy for their own purposes. When Williams died, American Federation for Children Chairman Betsy DeVos (who is among the most wealthy and powerful voices in the “school choice” movement) wrote that “hundreds of thousands of children across the country who benefit from school choice” have Williams to thank.</p><p>Of course DeVos failed to mention that Williams had a change of heart. In reality, as Tabachnik noted in her story, “Williams’ alienation from the movement she helped birth offers a cautionary tale for those who believe that vouchers, tuition tax credits for private schools – or even quasi-public charter schools – may offer a magic bullet to equitable education for underserved urban children.”</p></div></div><div class="tags clearfix"><div class="field-label">Issues:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><span class="field-item"><a href="/issues/vouchers">Vouchers</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/issues/tuition-tax-credits-and-deductions">Tuition Tax Credits and Deductions</a></span></div></div><div class="tags clearfix"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/polly-williams">Polly Williams</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/rachel-tabachnik">Rachel Tabachnik</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/betsy-devos">Betsy DeVos</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/american-federation-children">American Federation for Children</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/scott-walker">Scott Walker</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/milwaukee-parental-choice-program">Milwaukee Parental Choice Program</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/bradley-foundation">Bradley Foundation</a></span></div></div><div class="tags clearfix"><div class="field-label">Location:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><span class="field-item"><a href="/our-work/grassroots/wisconsin">Wisconsin</a></span></div></div>Tue, 03 Feb 2015 19:38:22 +0000Simon Brown10866 at http://www.au.orghttp://www.au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/change-of-heart-wisc-voucher-pioneer-grew-disillusioned-with-school-choice#commentsDeluded Duo: Wisc. and La. Governors Defend ‘School Choice’ Schemes Against Discrimination Chargeshttp://www.au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/deluded-duo-wisc-and-la-governors-defend-school-choice-schemes-against
<a href="/about/people/simon-brown">Simon Brown</a><div class="field field-name-field-blog-type field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/blogs/wall-of-separation">Wall of Separation</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-callout field-type-text-long field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Have Walker and Jindal ever stopped to think about why vouchers are always under fire? If the programs were really as great as the two governors claim, then they wouldn’t constantly have to defend them.</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="prose"><p>The Obama administration has been investigating private school voucher programs in Wisconsin and Louisiana for possible racial discrimination and failure to accommodate special-needs children, putting the governors of those two states on the defensive as they try to explain away some pretty serious accusations.</p><p>In Louisiana, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) investigated claims that the state’s voucher scheme is hindering efforts to desegregate schools, 34 of which are still under federal court orders to desegregate. DOJ ultimately decided late last year that it <a href="https://au.org/church-state/january-2014-church-state/people-events/justice-department-backs-off-la-lawsuit">would not pursue a lawsuit</a>, but a federal judge said Louisiana must work with DOJ to monitor its voucher program more closely.</p><p>Meanwhile in Wisconsin, DOJ is looking into complaints that private schools accepting voucher money are discriminating against students with special needs. That inquiry, which began in 2011, <a href="http://www.jsonline.com/blogs/news/259300161.html">is ongoing</a>. </p><p>Naturally the GOP governors of the two states, Scott Walker (Wisc.) and Bobby Jindal (La.), are none too pleased about the scrutiny their prized programs have undergone. So they <a href="http://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2014/07/whats-obamas-problem-with-school-choice-108667.html?hp=r2#.U76gIT-b3Ax">authored an op-ed</a> that ran in <em>Politico</em> this week, attempting to defend “school choice” schemes. </p><p>Their defense was a bit thin.</p><p>“Why would the federal Department of Justice cite the Civil Rights Act and the specter of segregation to try and block a school choice program where more than nine in 10 participants come from racial minority groups?” Walker and Jindal asked. “Or use the Americans with Disabilities Act to claim another school voucher program discriminates against individuals with disabilities, without so much as a single complaint from a student or parent to prove their case?”</p><p>Let’s address the two states separately. In Louisiana, it may be true that 90 percent of the students who receive vouchers from the state are racial minorities. But that isn’t the issue. The problem is not who gets the vouchers; rather it’s about where the students who receive vouchers end up.</p><p>In late 2013, DOJ <a href="https://au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/voucher-swamp-audits-of-louisiana-s-school-choice-program-find-oversight">released a report </a>on Louisiana’s voucher program and it offered some pretty startling statistics. Overall, the report showed black students with vouchers tended to leave schools that are mostly black and end up in schools that are mostly black. By contrast, white students who received vouchers were placed in schools that are almost entirely white after leaving schools that were more racially balanced.</p><p>"White students leave schools with considerable white and black diversity to attend overwhelmingly white schools, on average, while black students typically remain in school environments that are largely black," the report says.</p><p>Even private school vouchers, which the program offers, did nothing to alleviate the segregation problem.</p><p>“The majority of black voucher recipient students (more than 62 percent) are assigned to private schools that are 90-100 percent black,” the report says. “The reverse pattern is seen for white voucher recipients. More than 40 percent of white recipients are assigned to private schools that are 90-100 percent white, whereas just 5.5 percent are assigned to 90-100 percent black private schools.”</p><p>None of that information bolsters Jindal’s case that his voucher scheme isn’t an attempt to send the Pelican State back to the Jim Crow era.</p><p>As for Wisconsin, Walker’s claims simply don’t hold up. In fact, there have been plenty of complaints that special-needs students are not accommodated in private schools that receive voucher money.</p><p>WisconsinWatch.org, a project of the Wisconsin Center for Investigative Journalism, recently <a href="http://wisconsinwatch.org/2013/07/in-some-choice-schools-disabilities-are-liability/">examined vouchers in the state</a>, focusing specifically on how students with learning disabilities and other challenges are faring in private schools. The answer is not too well – because the private schools taking part in the voucher program mostly refuse to serve them.</p><p>For example, writer Rory Linnane interviewed Milwaukee resident Kim Fitzer, whose daughter Trinity suffers from medical and behavioral issues. Fitzer used a voucher worth $6,442 to enroll Trinity in Northwest Catholic School for kin­dergarten during the 2011-12 academic year. In March of 2012, the school expelled Trinity, citing “continuing behavior issues” – but it kept the money.</p><p>Critics say it’s a familiar pattern. Under Wisconsin’s voucher law, private schools get to keep half of the voucher as long as a student is enrolled on the third Friday of September. They get to keep the entire amount if the student is enrolled on the second Friday in January. Some special-needs students are kept until these benchmarks are met and then expelled. Most return to public schools.</p><p>It seems Jindal, Walker and other voucher advocates are constantly forced to defend “school choice” schemes from accusations that vouchers are both <a href="https://au.org/church-state/october-2013-church-state/featured/the-great-voucher-fraud">bad education policy</a> and bad for church-state separation because they allow taxpayer dollars to flow directly to religious schools.</p><p>Have Walker and Jindal ever stopped to think about <a href="http://chippewa.com/news/local/critics-say-wisconsin-s-voucher-schools-fail-to-provide-equal/article_e1f6ea5e-e6ae-11e2-b89a-001a4bcf887a.html">why vouchers</a> are <a href="https://lawreview.law.lsu.edu/2013/11/05/some-children-left-behind-reconsidering-louisianas-school-voucher-program/">always under fire</a>? If the programs were really as great as the two governors claim, then they wouldn’t constantly have to defend them. That’s something they ought to consider.</p></div></div><div class="tags clearfix"><div class="field-label">Issues:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><span class="field-item"><a href="/issues/vouchers">Vouchers</a></span></div></div><div class="tags clearfix"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/scott-walker">Scott Walker</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/bobby-jindal">Bobby Jindal</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/us-department-justice">U.S. Department of Justice</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/segregation">segregation</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/special-needs-students">special-needs students</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/school-choice">school choice</a></span></div></div><div class="tags clearfix"><div class="field-label">Location:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><span class="field-item"><a href="/our-work/grassroots/louisiana">Louisiana</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/our-work/grassroots/wisconsin">Wisconsin</a></span></div></div>Thu, 10 Jul 2014 15:58:48 +0000Simon Brown10246 at http://www.au.orghttp://www.au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/deluded-duo-wisc-and-la-governors-defend-school-choice-schemes-against#commentsFighting Back: Wisconsin Voucher Opponents Make Last-Minute Stand http://www.au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/fighting-back-wisconsin-voucher-opponents-make-last-minute-stand
<a href="/about/people/simon-brown">Simon Brown</a><div class="field field-name-field-blog-type field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/blogs/wall-of-separation">Wall of Separation</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-callout field-type-text-long field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">The United States has avoided sectarian strife because our children are not segregated along religious lines in religious schools.</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="prose"><p>Although it seems <a href="https://www.au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/dastardly-deal-wisconsin-gov-has-republicans-on-board-with-his-school?__utma=1.791044345.1360361050.1371497710.1371574110.176&amp;__utmb=1.2.10.1371574110&amp;__utmc=1&amp;__utmx=-&amp;__utmz=1.1363966992.67.2.utmcsr=au.org|utmccn=%28referral%29|utmcmd=referral|utmcct=/search/site/politicking&amp;__utmv=-&amp;__utmk=37345184">only a matter of time</a> before Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker (R) realizes his master plan to expand vouchers, some “school choice” opponents are making a last-ditch effort to stop Walker’s scheme.</p><p>The Milwaukee <em>Journal Sentinel</em> reported that state Democrats are trying to convince a handful of moderate Republican senators<a href="http://www.jsonline.com/news/education/wisconsin-democrats-courting-gop-moderates-to-change-their-voucher-vote-b9935615z1-211885071.html"> to switch their votes</a> on the 2014-2015 budget proposal because they want to stop the proposed expansion of the state’s voucher program. (Republicans have a narrow 18-15 margin in the state Senate, so just two would need to vote with Democrats to derail the legislation).</p><p>The budget bill being considered this week contains a provision that would expand the current private school voucher program statewide (it’s presently only available in Milwaukee and eastern Racine County). If approved, in the first year a maximum of 500 kids with household incomes up to 185 percent of the federal poverty level ($43,567) could receive taxpayer money to attend private institutions, including religious schools. The next year, up to 1,000 could qualify for the program.</p><p>But Democrats say they don’t think the cap will remain in place for very long.</p><p>“This is a Wisconsin Legislature that is poised to walk off a cliff,” said Rep. Fred Clark (D-Sauk City), according to the <em>Journal Sentinel</em>. “We are going to do our best in the next three days to prevent that from occurring.”</p><p>Lest you think this is just a matter of political posturing, it is not – advocates for public education <a href="http://www.postcrescent.com/article/20130617/APC0101/306170343/Official-speaks-out-against-vouchers">are pretty darn upset about the voucher scheme, too</a>.</p><p>Appleton School Superintendent Lee Allinger expressed concern about handing over public money to private schools because those schools don’t have the same accountability standards.</p><p>“There’s this idea of a double standard,” Allinger said, according to the Appleton <em>Post Crescent</em>. “If your school has the majority of its funding coming through vouchers … should you not be held to the same level of accountability [as public schools]?”</p><p>State Superintendent Tony Evers also criticized the program, saying at a news conference that the budget “is a bad budget for kids. It’s bad for public schools. It’s bad for Wisconsin.”</p><p>It’s also going to create constitutional conflicts, as noted by Wisconsin resident Clete Delvaux. Delvaux, of De Pere, Wisc., says he is a Catholic who went to Catholic schools, but his parents didn’t expect the public to pay their son’s tuition. He also understands that government can’t pick and choose which faiths it funds through vouchers.</p><p><a href="http://www.greenbaypressgazette.com/article/20130617/GPG0603/306170307/Keep-separation-between-church-state?nclick_check=1">In a stellar letter</a> to the Green Bay <em>Press Gazette</em>, he asked: “Should the taxpayers — many of whom espouse no religion at all — be forced to contribute their public taxes to the teaching of a particular religious doctrine in a private school?</p><p>“Remember Christianity is not the only religion that would get these tax monies to support their doctrines. Will the taxpayer also pay to support the doctrines taught in Muslim schools (which may teach the dreaded Sharia Law), Mormon schools, Branch Davidian schools, etc.? Who will decide which group can qualify as a ‘school’?”</p><p>Concluded Delvaux: “Separation between church (religions) and state is a well-established American principle. We would do well to keep it that way.” </p><p>Delvaux is exactly right, and <a href="http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/news/afp/130617/obama-and-cameron-brush-away-divides-n-ireland-school">an example from across the pond</a> illustrates that.</p><p>On a recent visit to Enniskillen, Northern Ireland, President Obama visited one of the few religiously integrated schools there. The Enniskillen School is known as an “Integrated Primary School,” and its 245 students are a mix of Catholics, Protestants and others, Agence France-Presse (AFP) said.</p><p>Just six percent of Northern Ireland’s schools are religiously mixed, which AFP said is a source of ire for critics who think such a setup perpetuates hatred in a region that saw decades of religiously motivated violence.</p><p>“If towns remain divided – if Catholics have their schools and buildings, and Protestants have theirs – if we can't see ourselves in one another, if fear or resentment are allowed to harden, that encourages division,” Obama said, according to AFP.</p><p>The United States has avoided sectarian strife because our children are not segregated along religious lines in religious schools. But if vouchers make private schools a more attractive option for parents, more and more children may attend schools that teach students only one faith. The result will surely be intolerance.</p><p>In the end, the move toward vouchers is a move toward divisiveness. If only lawmakers in Wisconsin and other states could understand that, perhaps there would be no more voucher schemes.</p></div></div><div class="tags clearfix"><div class="field-label">Issues:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><span class="field-item"><a href="/issues/vouchers">Vouchers</a></span></div></div><div class="tags clearfix"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/gov-scott-walker">Gov. Scott Walker</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/president-obama">President Obama</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/clete-delvaux">Clete Delvaux</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/enniskillen">Enniskillen</a></span></div></div><div class="tags clearfix"><div class="field-label">Location:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><span class="field-item"><a href="/our-work/grassroots/wisconsin">Wisconsin</a></span></div></div>Tue, 18 Jun 2013 20:21:35 +0000Simon Brown8675 at http://www.au.orghttp://www.au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/fighting-back-wisconsin-voucher-opponents-make-last-minute-stand#commentsDastardly Deal: Wisconsin Gov. Has Republicans On Board With His School Voucher Schemehttp://www.au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/dastardly-deal-wisconsin-gov-has-republicans-on-board-with-his-school
<a href="/about/people/simon-brown">Simon Brown</a><div class="field field-name-field-blog-type field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/blogs/wall-of-separation">Wall of Separation</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-callout field-type-text-long field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Walker seems driven to pump state funds into religious and other private schools, no matter what. He doesn’t seem to care about test scores or how much money is pulled away from public schools. And he certainly hasn’t expressed any apprehension about using taxpayer money to fund religious enterprises.</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="prose"><p>Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker (R) has faced pushback of late from his own party when it comes to his private school voucher expansion, but now it seems he’s cleared some major hurdles and will move forward.</p><p>We’ve known for some time that Walker had grand plans to fund religious and other private schools statewide, which I’m sure had nothing to do with the fact that <a href="http://www.wisdc.org/pr040513.php">voucher advocacy groups have donated $2.35 million to support Walker since 2006</a>.</p><p>And while <a href="https://www.au.org/church-state/january-2013-church-state/featured/2013-state-of-the-states">we knew Walker would come on strong with his scheme</a>, it seemed for a moment that his own party would put a stop to his plans. Earlier this year, Wisconsin Senate President Mike Ellis (R-Neenah) <a href="http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887323628804578344223598921766.html">said he would oppose Walker’s voucher proposal</a> in the fiscal 2014-15 budget because Walker had ignored the input of a handful of Republicans who don’t support voucher expansion, according to <em>The</em> <em>Wall Street Journal</em>. </p><p>But this morning, the Associated Press reported that Republicans <a href="http://www.nbc15.com/election/headlines/Final-committee-action-slated-on-Walker-budget-210079711.html">have reached a deal to expand private school vouchers</a>. Walker told the AP last week that<a href="http://www.fdlreporter.com/article/20130604/FON0101/306040095/"> he now wants vouchers to be available in all school districts</a>, but limited to 1,000 students per district after next year. A maximum of one percent of students could participate in any given district, except for Milwaukee and Racine, he told the AP.</p><p>Walker had originally sought private school vouchers in only nine cities but with no enrollment maximum after two years, the Fond du Lac <em>Reporter</em> said.</p><p>Walker and his allies may think private school vouchers are a ticket to better education for many students, but they’re wrong. A study released this year on voucher students in Milwaukee and Racine (the only districts currently eligible for vouchers),<a href="http://www.jsonline.com/news/education/wisconsin-voucher-students-lag-in-latest-state-test-r49ktlp-204204821.html"> showed they scored lower than their public school peers</a> in both reading and math in 2012.</p><p>About 13 percent of voucher students scored proficient or better in math, while about 19 percent of public school students were at that level. As for reading, about 11 percent of private voucher students scored proficient or better in reading compared with about 14 percent of public school students.</p><p>Bob Peterson, president of the Milwaukee Teachers’ Education Association, said in a statement that these results should tell lawmakers that taking money away from public schools is bad policy.</p><p>“They should provide fair funding for our successful public school system, and stop throwing money away on underperforming vouchers, so that all students in Wisconsin can continue to have access to a high-quality public education,” he said. </p><p>And yet Walker won’t listen. He told the <em>Reporter</em> that: “Every two years we’re going to come back and talk about further expansion.”</p><p>To make matters worse, misguided legislators have found an additional way to entice more students to enroll at private schools – all at taxpayer expense, of course.</p><p>This week, the Wisconsin Legislature’s Joint Finance Committee <a href="http://www.sfgate.com/news/article/Private-school-tuition-tax-deduction-approved-4578399.php">approved a new tax credit for tuition expenses</a> of up to $4,000 per year for elementary schoolers and up to $10,000 for high school students. It would take effect starting in 2014, and would cost the state about $30 million, the AP reported.</p><p>So what do we have here? Walker seems driven to pump state funds into religious and other private schools, no matter what. He doesn’t seem to care about test scores or how much money is pulled away from public schools. And he certainly hasn’t expressed any apprehension about using taxpayer money to fund religious enterprises.</p><p>If you live in Wisconsin, let your lawmakers know what you think about this.</p><p>Americans United has been fighting vouchers nationwide for years, but it seems Wisconsin is one of our toughest battles to date. This is going to be a long fight, but we’re in it for the long haul.</p></div></div><div class="tags clearfix"><div class="field-label">Issues:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><span class="field-item"><a href="/issues/vouchers">Vouchers</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/issues/tuition-tax-credits-and-deductions">Tuition Tax Credits and Deductions</a></span></div></div><div class="tags clearfix"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/scott-walker">Scott Walker</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/private-school-vouchers">private school vouchers</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/mike-ellis">Mike Ellis</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/milwaukee-teachers-education-association">Milwaukee Teachers&#039; Education Association</a></span></div></div><div class="tags clearfix"><div class="field-label">Location:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><span class="field-item"><a href="/our-work/grassroots/wisconsin">Wisconsin</a></span></div></div>Wed, 05 Jun 2013 17:19:47 +0000Simon Brown8640 at http://www.au.orghttp://www.au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/dastardly-deal-wisconsin-gov-has-republicans-on-board-with-his-school#commentsJust Say No: Supreme Court Should Skip Elmbrook Church Graduation Casehttp://www.au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/just-say-no-supreme-court-should-skip-elmbrook-church-graduation-case
<a href="/about/people/simon-brown">Simon Brown</a><div class="field field-name-field-blog-type field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/blogs/wall-of-separation">Wall of Separation</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-callout field-type-text-long field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Public schools should not hold graduations in religious environments. Doing so sends a message that non-believers should stay away. </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="prose"><p>Five days before Christmas, the Religious Right delivered a most unwelcome gift to the U.S. Supreme Court – <a href="http://www.jsonline.com/features/religion/elmbrook-church-graduation-case-could-go-to-supreme-court-ef84rqc-184568101.html">a petition asking the high court to hear a case</a> involving public school graduation ceremonies held in a church.</p><p>Back in 2009, Americans United <a href="https://www.au.org/church-state/september-2012-church-state/featured/caps-in-the-air">filed suit in federal court on behalf of nine students, graduates, and parents</a> who objected that the Elmbrook School District near Milwaukee, Wisc., used Elmbrook Church to host high school graduation ceremonies.</p><p>Americans United explained that holding graduations in the religious environment of the church violates the Constitution. The mega-church outside Milwaukee failed to remove religious symbols and texts during the graduation ceremonies. In fact, students and parents sat in pews with Bibles and hymnal books directly in front of them, and also saw church promotional materials telling children that they were “God’s Little Lambs” and inviting all attendees to return to the church so that they can “know how to become a Christian.”</p><p>Elmbrook Church even displayed a large cross, which church officials refused to cover, in the sanctuary where graduation ceremonies were held.</p><p>The mega-church also attacks the beliefs and identities of some of the students and parents who had to go to the church to attend their graduations. The church condemns atheists as people “who think they are smarter than God.” It refers to homosexuality as “not an acceptable lifestyle” and “contrary to God’s will.”</p><p>Americans United noted that there are many non-religious facilities available for the graduation ceremonies, and other school districts in the area make use of them.</p><p>A federal court ruled against AU, and a three-judge appeals court did as well. But AU attorneys pursued another appeal, and a 10-judge panel from the 7<sup>th</sup> U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals overruled the earlier decisions, voting 7-3 in favor of Americans United this year.</p><p>Writing for the majority, Judge Joel M. Flaum said holding a public school commencement in the Elmbrook Church sanctuary conveyed “an impermissible message of endorsement” of religion and was “religiously coercive.”</p><p>Flaum added that “conducting a public school graduation ceremony in a church — one that among other things featured staffed information booths laden with religious literature and banners with appeals for children to join ‘school ministries’ — runs afoul of the First Amendment’s Establishment Clause.”</p><p>But did that home run of a decision persuade the Religious Right to give up? Sadly no. The Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, a Religious Right-allied legal outfit based in Washington, D.C., has asked the Supreme Court to take up this case. </p><p>“Religion is not asbestos, and the Constitution does not require the government to treat churches as contaminated buildings that are uniquely unfit for public events,” Luke Goodrich, deputy general counsel for the Becket Fund, told the <em>Milwaukee</em> <em>Journal Sentinel</em>.</p><p>No one is suggesting that religion is asbestos, but that doesn’t mean public schools should hold graduations in religious environments. Doing so sends a message that non-believers should stay away. </p><p>“Public schools serve an incredibly diverse population,” AU Executive Director Barry W. Lynn said in September. “It is vitally important for our schools to make all students feel welcome, regardless of their views about religion.”</p><p>The U.S. Supreme Court has a lot of serious issues to weigh in on these days from healthcare mandates to same-sex marriage. The Elmbrook case has been decided correctly by a lower court, and further consideration of the matter would be a waste of the high court’s valuable time. </p><p>As the <em>Journal Sentinel </em>noted, the U.S. Supreme Court accepts less than two percent of the thousands of petitions it receives annually. Let’s hope the Elmbrook case is among the 98 percent.</p></div></div><div class="tags clearfix"><div class="field-label">Issues:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><span class="field-item"><a href="/issues/use-religious-buildings-schools">Use of Religious Buildings by Schools</a></span></div></div><div class="tags clearfix"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/becket-fund-for-religious-liberty">Becket Fund for Religious Liberty</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/elmbrook-school-district">Elmbrook School District</a></span></div></div><div class="tags clearfix"><div class="field-label">Location:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><span class="field-item"><a href="/our-work/grassroots/wisconsin">Wisconsin</a></span></div></div>Wed, 26 Dec 2012 19:42:06 +0000Simon Brown7859 at http://www.au.orghttp://www.au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/just-say-no-supreme-court-should-skip-elmbrook-church-graduation-case#commentsFull Appeals Court Agrees To Review Wisc. Graduation Prayer Casehttp://www.au.org/church-state/january-2012-church-state/people-events/full-appeals-court-agrees-to-review-wisc
<div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="prose"><p align="left">An Americans United legal case challenging a Wisconsin public school’s decision to hold graduation ceremonies in a church is about to get a second look in federal court.</p><p align="left">A full panel of the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has agreed to hear <em>Doe 3 ex rel. Doe 2 v. Elmbrook School District</em>. An 11-judge panel will decide whether it is constitutional for a public school to hold graduation ceremonies in the sanctuary of a church.</p><p align="left">Americans United attorneys asked the full appeals court to reconsider a recent appellate panel decision upholding the Elmbrook School District’s use of Elmbrook Church to hold graduation ceremonies for two local high schools.</p><p align="left">In a Sept. 9 decision, a three-judge panel of the 7th Circuit ruled 2-1 that the practice does not violate the separation of church and state. On Nov. 17, Americans United received word that the ruling has been vacated, and the full bench of judges will rule on the lawsuit.</p><p align="left">AU attorneys hailed the development.</p><p align="left">“I am very pleased that the full appeals court is going to look at this case,” said Americans United Associate Legal Director Alex J. Luchenitser. “It is wrong to ask public school students to submit to an intensely religious environment as the price of attending their own graduations.”</p><p align="left">Elmbrook Church displays a large cross in the sanctuary where graduation ceremonies are held, and the facility is replete with other religious iconography. Church officials have refused to cover the cross during graduation ceremonies.</p><p align="left">During graduation ceremonies, parents and children sit in pews filled with Bibles and hymnal books, “Scribble Cards for God’s Little Lambs” and church promotional cards that ask them whether they “would like to know how to become a Christian.” The church’s lobby is filled with evangelical pamphlets and postings, many of which are aimed at children and teens.</p><p align="left">The Americans United lawsuit was filed on behalf of nine students, parents, and graduates of the school district. The plaintiffs feel unwelcome and extremely uncomfortable attending graduation ceremonies at the church due to its religion-permeated environment.</p><p align="left">Americans United notes that there are many non-religious facilities available for the graduation ceremonies. Other school districts in the area use them.</p><p align="left">The lawsuit is being litigated by AU’s Luchenitser in consultation with AU Legal Director Ayesha N. Khan. James H. Hall Jr. and F. Thomas Olson of the Milwaukee civil rights firm Hall Legal, S.C. are serving as co-counsel in the case.</p><p align="left">The case will be argued Feb. 9.</p></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-cs-department field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">People &amp; Events</div></div></div><div class="tags clearfix"><div class="field-label">Issues:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><span class="field-item"><a href="/issues/school-prayer">School Prayer</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/issues/use-religious-buildings-schools">Use of Religious Buildings by Schools</a></span></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-cs-issue field-type-node-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Magazine Issue:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><article id="node-6472" class="node node-church-state-issue clearfix">
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<h2><a href="/church-state/january-2012-church-state">
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</div></div></div>Tue, 20 Dec 2011 16:00:40 +0000Susan Hansen6483 at http://www.au.orghttp://www.au.org/church-state/january-2012-church-state/people-events/full-appeals-court-agrees-to-review-wisc#commentsWisconsin Graduation Shouldn’t Be In Church, Says AU http://www.au.org/church-state/december-2011-church-state/au-bulletin/wisconsin-graduation-shouldn%E2%80%99t-be-in-church-says
<div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="prose"><p align="left">Americans United has urged a full federal appeals court to hold that it is unconstitutional for a public school to hold graduation ceremonies in the sanctuary of a Wisconsin church.</p><p align="left">In a Sept. 9 decision, a three-judge panel of the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled 2-1 that the practice does not violate the Constitution. AU is asking the 11-judge bench to review the ruling.</p><p align="left">The lawsuit was filed on behalf of nine students, parents and graduates of the Elmbrook School District. The plaintiffs said they feel unwelcome and extremely uncomfortable attending graduation ceremonies in a church.</p><p align="left">“Public schools should schedule graduation ceremonies at facilities where all families feel welcome,” AU Senior Litigation Counsel Alex J. Luchenitser said. “Students should not have to be immersed in an intensely religious environment of a faith different from their own in order to attend their graduation. Graduation is too important to leave some families out.”</p><p align="left">Americans United has noted that there are numerous facilities available for graduation ceremonies that do not involve religion, and other school districts in the area make use of them.</p></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-cs-department field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">AU Bulletin</div></div></div><div class="tags clearfix"><div class="field-label">Issues:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><span class="field-item"><a href="/issues/use-religious-buildings-schools">Use of Religious Buildings by Schools</a></span></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-cs-issue field-type-node-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Magazine Issue:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><article id="node-6378" class="node node-church-state-issue clearfix">
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<h2><a href="/church-state/december-2011-church-state">
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<h4>How Ralph Stewart Became Johnson County’s Poster Boy For Church-State Separation</h4> </div>
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<h4>At Anniversary Kickoff Event, AU’s Barry Lynn Discusses Issues Of The Day With Ellie Smeal And Bill Press</h4> </div>
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<h4>City-Assisted Shelter In Washington, D.C., Drops Demand That Homeless Attend Religious Services After AU/ACLU Lawsuit</h4> </div>
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<h3 class="field-content"><a href="/church-state/december-2011-church-state/featured/instant-replay-in-indiana">Instant Replay In Indiana</a></h3>
<h4>Federal Court Strikes Down South Bend’s Latest Scheme To Subsidize Construction Of New Catholic School</h4> </div>
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<div class="views-field views-field-title"> <span class="field-content"><a href="/church-state/december-2011-church-state/people-events/evangelical-columnist-cal-thomas-blasts-church">Evangelical Columnist Cal Thomas Blasts Church-Based Electioneering</a></span> </div></li>
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<div class="views-field views-field-title"> <span class="field-content"><a href="/church-state/december-2011-church-state/au-bulletin/kentucky-court-upholds-god%E2%80%99s-role-in-state">Kentucky Court Upholds God’s Role In State Security</a></span> </div></li>
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</div></div></div>Mon, 28 Nov 2011 17:09:55 +0000Susan Hansen6413 at http://www.au.orghttp://www.au.org/church-state/december-2011-church-state/au-bulletin/wisconsin-graduation-shouldn%E2%80%99t-be-in-church-says#commentsFull Federal Appeals Court Agrees To Review Decision Allowing Public School Commencements in Wisconsin Church http://www.au.org/media/press-releases/full-federal-appeals-court-agrees-to-review-decision-allowing-public-school
<div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="prose"><p>The full 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has agreed to decide whether it is constitutional for a public school to hold graduation ceremonies in the sanctuary of a Wisconsin church.</p><p>Americans United attorneys asked the full appeals court to reconsider a recent appellate panel decision upholding the Elmbrook School District’s use of Elmbrook Church to hold graduation ceremonies for two local high schools.</p><p>In a Sept. 9 decision, a three-judge panel of the 7th Circuit ruled 2-1 that the practice does not violate the separation of church and state.</p><p>Today, however, that ruling was vacated and the full 10-member 7th Circuit will now rule on the lawsuit.</p><p>"I am very pleased that the full appeals court is going to look at this case," said Americans United Senior Litigation Counsel Alex J. Luchenitser. "It is wrong to ask public school students to submit to an intensely religious environment as the price of attending their own graduations."</p><p>Elmbrook Church displays a large cross in the sanctuary where graduation ceremonies are held, and the facility is replete with other religious iconography. Church officials have refused to cover the cross during graduation ceremonies.</p><p>At graduations, parents and children sit in pews filled with Bibles and hymnal books, “Scribble Cards for God’s Little Lambs,” and church promotional cards that ask them whether they “would like to know how to become a Christian.” The church’s lobby is filled with evangelical pamphlets and postings, many of which are aimed at children and teens.</p><p>The Americans United lawsuit was filed on behalf of nine students, parents, and graduates of the school district. The plaintiffs feel unwelcome and extremely uncomfortable attending graduation ceremonies at the church due to its religion-permeated environment.</p><p>Americans United notes that there are many non-religious facilities available for the graduation ceremonies. Other school districts in the area use them.</p><p>The <em>Doe 3 ex rel. Doe 2 v. Elmbrook School District</em> lawsuit is being litigated by AU’s Luchenitser in consultation with AU Legal Director Ayesha N. Khan. James H. Hall Jr. and F. Thomas Olson of the Milwaukee civil rights firm Hall Legal, S.C. are serving as co-counsel in the case.</p><p>Americans United is a religious liberty watchdog group based in Washington, D.C. Founded in 1947, the organization educates Americans about the importance of church-state separation in safeguarding religious freedom.</p><p> </p></div></div><div class="tags clearfix"><div class="field-label">Issues:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><span class="field-item"><a href="/issues/use-religious-buildings-schools">Use of Religious Buildings by Schools</a></span></div></div><h3 >Students Should Not Be Forced To Graduate In Sectarian Facility Underneath Large Cross, Americans United&nbsp;Contends</h3><div class="tags clearfix"><div class="field-label">Location:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><span class="field-item"><a href="/our-work/grassroots/wisconsin">Wisconsin</a></span></div></div>Thu, 17 Nov 2011 05:00:00 +0000Joseph L. Conn6383 at http://www.au.orghttp://www.au.org/media/press-releases/full-federal-appeals-court-agrees-to-review-decision-allowing-public-school#commentsBill Creating Statewide School Voucher Plan Advances In Ohiohttp://www.au.org/church-state/november-2011-church-state/people-events/bill-creating-statewide-school-voucher-plan
<div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="prose"><p align="left">A bill that would create a statewide school voucher plan has cleared a committee of the Ohio House of Representatives.</p><p align="left">The voucher proposal, euphemistically dubbed the Parental Choice and Taxpayer Savings Scholarship Program, would extend vouchers for private school tuition to families using a formula tied to the income standards for reduced-price lunches. Although supporters say it is aimed at disadvantaged families, the ceiling is an annual income of $95,000.</p><p align="left">Under the scheme, vouchers would vary, ranging from $2,313 to $4,626.</p><p align="left">Ohio already has a voucher plan aimed at Cleveland, but this bill would be statewide. To become law, the measure would have to pass the full Ohio House and Senate, as well as be signed by Gov. John Kasich.</p><p align="left">In other news about vouchers:</p><p align="left"><strong>• A committee of the Milwaukee School Board</strong> has voted unanimously to give taxpayers more information about how much of their money is supporting private schools.</p><p align="left">The board’s Committee on Legislation, Rules and Policies voted 5-0 in September to list tax support for private schools separately on tax bills. Milwaukee has a voucher plan that has been in operation for two decades. Board member Larry Miller said the public school system has had to charge taxpayers $50 million in 2011 to pay for the private schools, reported the Milwaukee <em>Journal-Sentinel</em>.</p><p>“This irrational arrangement, which forces the district to levy what has come to be known as the ‘voucher tax,’ results in a situation in which over 17 percent of the levy attributed to MPS [Milwaukee Public Schools] goes, in essence, to non-MPS schools,” Miller wrote in a proposal.</p></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-cs-department field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">People &amp; Events</div></div></div><div class="tags clearfix"><div class="field-label">Issues:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><span class="field-item"><a href="/issues/vouchers">Vouchers</a></span></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-cs-issue field-type-node-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Magazine Issue:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><article id="node-6133" class="node node-church-state-issue clearfix">
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</div></div></div>Mon, 24 Oct 2011 19:42:04 +0000Susan Hansen6226 at http://www.au.orghttp://www.au.org/church-state/november-2011-church-state/people-events/bill-creating-statewide-school-voucher-plan#commentsPlaintiffs ask for en banc review on constitutionality of graduations at churchhttp://www.au.org/news/plaintiffs-ask-for-en-banc-review-on-constitutionality-of-graduations-at-church
<div class="field field-name-field-news-source field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">State Bar of Wisconsin</div></div></div>Wed, 19 Oct 2011 17:40:50 +0000Joseph L. Conn6115 at http://www.au.orghttp://www.au.org/news/plaintiffs-ask-for-en-banc-review-on-constitutionality-of-graduations-at-church#comments